The Penrith Panthers have returned to the Jersey Flegg winners’ circle, defeating a 12-man Wests Tigers outfit 30-12 on a wet Sunday afternoon at BlueBet Stadium.
The match was originally scheduled for Windsor, but had to be moved at the 11th hour due to the poor overnight weather conditions.
The change of venue did no harms to the Panthers, who dominated the opening minutes courtesy of goal line drop outs and penalties. They took a 4-0 lead in the fourth minute when a Ryley Smith grubber sat up perfectly for Angelis Hotere-Papalii.
The Wests Tigers hit back in the 15th minute following a run of possession, scoring out wide through Brandon Tumeth. Zane Camroux converted to give them the lead.
Wests struck again shortly after, opening up a 12-4 lead when Apisalome Saukuru crashed over under the posts.
Jersey Flegg Highlights: Panthers v Wests Tigers
The Panthers were next to score in the 26th minute, when Connor Mason set up Aston Warwick with a smart short-side play, reducing the deficit to 12-8.
Warwick’s second in the dying minutes of the half saw them draw level, with Addison Williams converting to take a 14-12 lead to half time.
The Wests Tigers were reduced to 12 men for the final half hour of the match when Josh Feledy was sent off on the advice of the sideline official, opening the door for the Panthers to flex their attacking muscle.
The Panthers scored immediately after the send off when Billy Scott crashed through the defence to score under the posts.
Scott then turned provider, putting in a grubber that hit the upright and bounced straight to Laron Patea to score.
They made it three tries in ten minutes when they caught Wests Tigers short where Feledy would have been defending, with Williams crossing for a simple try out wide to take the lead out to 30-12.
With the win secured the Panthers opted to rest a couple of their stars for the final minutes, finishing with a 30-12 victory.
